Chefchaouen

Chefchaouen (شفشاون) is a city in Morocco.

Culture and History

It's no wonder that tourists flock to Chefchaouen: this humble town is the embodiment of almost every Moroccan cliché. The picturesque medina, set against the dramatic backdrop of the Rif Mountains, is filled with white-washed homes with distinctive, powder-blue accents. Xaouen was under Spanish influence so a dialect of Spanish is widely spoken.

Travel to Chefchaouen, visa requirements

The main bus station is a fifteen minute, uphill walk south-west of the medina. There are usually a couple of petit taxis waiting for a customer at the entry. Don't pay more than Dh 10 to get to the medina. If it is hot, or, as is very likely, you have just endured a long coach drive to the town, you should seriously consider climbing into one of these taxis. With a heavy backpack, the walk up to the hotels of the town can be extremely strenuous!

Get around

There are plenty of petit taxis to ferry you around town (they are not metered, agree on a price before you start your trip), but most of the town, and certainly the medina are easily traversed by foot. A petit taxi shouldn't cost more than 15 Dh to the bus station from the medina.

Chaouen Rural organizes really interesting trips to the rural part of the Chaouen province. You can tell them what are your interests and they'll create an affordable plan for you. If you're interested in food they may send you to El Bellouta where you'll have a few meals with a local family.

Chefchaouen attractions and sightseeing

• The medina is the focal point of interest for most visitors to Chefchaouen.

• Walking around the town with its whitewashed walls, originally decorated in this style by Jewish immigrants, can be a nice change to the hustle and bustle of the cities of Marrakech, Rabat, and Fez.

• The waterfall to the east of the medina is a meeting point for local residents who come to cool off, chat and do their laundry. The café nearby is rather expensive, however.

• The ruins of an old mosque, on a hill behind the waterfall, overlook the medina and its crumbling tower offers great views of the town.

A strenuous hike up Jebel al-Kalaa (the peak immediately overlooking the town) is fun, but can take up to 9 hours round trip and goes by (and if you're unlucky, through) big marijuana plantations. The route is not well marked (with white and yellow), and you might have to trailblaze for parts of it if you lose the trail. Start by following the road up the southeastern valley, from where youll get a good view of town, and look for the markings up the mountain.

City tours

• Take a hike through the fantastic Rif Mountains. There is a pathway leading up into the mountains just behind the waterfall frequented by backpackers. Dont mind the vast marijuana plantations; the farmers and goatherders that work them are used to tourists and will at worst try to sell you hash.

Shopping, Chefchaouen souvenirs

They have lots of hippie type clothes and knitwear, and it's a friendly place to bargain. But you can also buy local typical clothes like jellabas, sarwal, leather articles... Chaouen has the usual Moroccan tourist stuff: carpets, leather wares, spices, metal articles, etc. You can probably negotiate better prices in Fes or Marrakech, if your heading there, since theyre bigger towns.

Good restaurants and cheap meals

The local speciality is baissara, but you can have all variety of Moroccan food in chaouen: tajines (sheep meat or goat meat), fish tagras,..

The region is well known also for olives, olive oil.

• Granada (2 blocks up from the main square). Great fish tajine, great couscous (~25dh)

• Chez Chouen opposite to Granada, also, great fish tajine (super! hot and tasty) and shrimp tajine (tastes more Spaniard than Moroccan, but it's great)

Chefchaouen nightlife, bars, clubs and pubs.

Hotels, youth hostels, lodging

Accommodation can be tight in the peak periods (mid-July to September) so its advisable arrive early or book ahead in these periods. A stroll through the medina will reveal dozens of cheap hotels, starting from Dh 40 per night for a single. Many of these hotels have roof terraces. Pension Castellana (singles from Dh 50) has a lovely roof terrace and is popular with backpackers. On arriving in Chefchaouen, you may be met by touts at the bus station. These will probably try to take you to Pension Castellana - but it is advisable to find the place by yourself, because if you arrive with touts, you'll be charged extra so they can get their commission.

• Casa Hassan. 700 DH+ (Singles).

• Dar Rass El Maa - Maison de Charme. Below the water source 500 DH+ (Singles).

• Auberge Dardara. Outside of town. 490 DH+ (Singles).

• Dar Echchaouen. Near the Medina and Ras El Ma. 490 DH+ (Singles).

• Hostal Gernika. Inside the medina, clean, luminous rooms. Has shared showers, with lots of hot water. Spanish spoken. 140 DH/180 DH (With bathroom/Without bathroom).

• Hostal Aline Av Sidi Ahmed el Uafi, 2 (on the eastern side of the medina, a bit away from the central square). About 40Dh per night per person, breakfast of a loaf of frenchbread and jam included. A nice, clean place; catch it during low season and youll likely end up with a room to yourself. Big terrass with a hammock. Laundry available. Kitchen and hot water available 24hr. People who work there speak mostly Arabic, French, and Spanish.

Stay safe

As Chefchaouen is located on the edge of Morocco's marijuana growing region, touts desperate to extract money from travellers can be a serious problem. Declining to accept a polite refusal, they can become threatening in their efforts to sell you hashish or act as unofficial guides. Their slogan seems to be, "You have the paranoia" if you try to get away from them. While many travelers partake in or even come here specifically for the abundance of marijuana, understand that it is definitely illegal and heavily punishable.

Travellers hiking in the Rif Mountain area close to the town have had stones thrown at them by armed men to scare them away from areas of marijuana production.

Get out

Regular buses depart from the long distance bus station (see 'Get Around') to destinations around Morocco:

• Tetouan - hourly buses until 18:00; Dh 15, 90 minutes.
• Tangier - two buses daily; Dh 27, 3 hours.
• Rabat - four buses daily, the last at 13:00; Dh 50, 4 hours.
• Casablanca - three morning buses, the last at 9:00; Dh 60, 5.5 hours.
• Meknes - three buses, the last at 15:30; Dh 45, 4 hours.
• Fez - four buses, the last at 13:30; Dh 50, 4 hours.
• Berbered and Ketama - daily buses at 08:00; Dh 20, 3 hours.

Grand taxis to Tetouan and Tangier depart from a street just off Plaza Mohammed V. Get to Septa (Spanish Ceuta) by taking the bus through Tetouan to Fnidek and then taking a cab to the border. Ignore touts trying to cell you documents at the border, since they are free at the passport window. No CTM buses go to Septa, so youll have to rely on regional. Dont pay more than 5Dh for a piece of luggage, and dont hand anybody big bills: theyll just walk away with them.

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